NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) is a package of care that is fully funded by the NHS for people who have a primary health need — regardless of income or savings. Many eligible families never apply.
Who may qualify
Anyone with complex, intense or unpredictable health needs, assessed through a national framework covering areas like mobility, continence, breathing and skin condition. It is not means-tested.
The assessment process
A initial checklist screening decides whether a full multidisciplinary assessment is needed. Ask your GP, hospital discharge team or the care home to start a checklist if you think it may apply.
If you’re refused
Decisions can be appealed, and many successful appeals follow an initial refusal. Keep detailed notes of care needs and consider asking an advocate or solicitor for help with a complex case.
Fast-track funding
For people who are rapidly deteriorating or nearing the end of life, a fast-track pathway can put NHS-funded care in place within days.
How to use this guide in practice
Don’t read this as general information — use it as a worksheet. Write down the details of the person who needs care, the current limits of the situation at home, the monthly budget, the documents you already have, whether a local-authority financial assessment may apply, and who you’ve already spoken with. Then turn every unclear point into a specific question. A family that arrives with a clear picture usually gets more useful answers than one calling under stress with scattered information.
Keep one simple rule: anything about admission, cost, funding, timelines and whether a care home fits must be confirmed directly with the care home or the competent authority serving your area. This guide prepares the search — it does not replace official decisions.
Want a clear shortlist before you start calling?
If you don’t know which care homes to contact first, Curalune Care Help can prepare an ordered shortlist of 3–5 suitable options — with CQC ratings, contacts, useful links and a ready-to-send inquiry.
The service helps you organise the search. It does not replace the care home’s own assessment and does not guarantee admission, price or bed availability.
Important limit
Curalune offers practical help with the search and orientation. Admission, pricing, bed availability and the final assessment always rest with the care homes and the competent authorities (the local authority, the NHS, the Care Quality Commission).